Lindum ‘not involved with bus provision’

The company which built the new doctors’ surgery in Pocklington says it has not been involved with any transport provision for the surgery.

Last week, the Pocklington Post ran an article about town councillors and elderley residents calling for a free bus to run from the centre of Pocklington to the new surgery, known as ‘The Beckside Centre’, on West Green. Town councillor Graham Perry said that councillors were under the impression that Lindum Construction, which built the centre, would provide a bus that would run from Pocklington town centre or different parts of Pocklington to the surgery and back again.

However, Lindum Construction says it was just employed as a construction company by the developer Pocklington Group Practice, which moved from its premises on Barmby Road to the new surgery in May.

A spokesperson for Lindum Construction said: “I would like to confirm that Lindum Construction is the contractor employed by the developer Pocklington Group Practice to build the modern, purpose built medical facility now in place at The Beckside Centre. Lindum Construction has not been involved in any way with any transport provision.

“The confusion amongst councillors may have been caused due to the fact that the construction company is not the developer, as the developer pledging to meeting the transport commitment is actually the Pocklington Group Practice.”

The Practice has recently announced a new transport scheme to help patients living in nearby villages travel to the new surgery.

Working in conjunction with East Riding Council, the new scheme, consisting of a 12 seater minibus, with capacity for one wheelchair, will operate every Thursday between the hours of 9.30am and 11.30am for a one year trial period.

To determine the best route for the bus, the Practice has worked closely with its Patient Participation Group and involved them in designing the planned route. To kick start the service, the bus will focus on the surrounding villages of Pocklington and will vary the route over a three week cycle. The details are as follows:

Week 1: Allerthorpe, Thornton, Melbourne

Week 2: Bielby, Seaton Ross

Week 3: Fangfoss, Full Sutton, Bishop Wilton

Berni Judge, of Pocklington Group Practice, said: “We have provided the funding for the whole trial period and we hope that there will be a lot of interest in the new service and that our patients will use it. There will be a charge for the service of either £5 per return journey or £2.50 for a single journey if preferred, whichever suits our patients the best. All the money taken will be put back into the service to prolong it beyond the trial period.”

The new service will start next Thursday and will be reviewed each month with East Riding Council to ensure that the service is covering the areas where it is needed the most. If necessary, in order to ensure that the service is fully used, there will be no problem in modifying the route the bus takes.

The number for patients to call to book their journey on the bus is: 0845 644 5959.